Obituaries are updated regularly and archived on JNOnline.com Fire Claims 'A Loving Person' BILL CARROLL Special to the Jewish News L isa woke me and told me she smelled smoke and heard strange noises ... I opened the bedroom door and the whole house was on fire ... I ran out and assumed she was following me, but she may not have realized the severity of the situation, or she went back to try to save some pictures. I guess I should have grabbed her and pulled her out with me." That's how Jeff Klein describes the horrifying situation early Friday morning, June 24, 2005, when a fire killed his wife, Lisa, destroyed their Commerce Township home and left him with sec- ond- and third-degree burns on his hands and feet as he tried desperately to rescue her. Realizing Lisa had not gone outside with him, Klein ran to the back of the house and broke open the bedroom window; but he said the fire was too fierce for him to enter. Commerce and White Lake Township firefighters also tried in vain to rescue her. Fifteen firefighters responded to the 5:30 a.m. blaze at the all-wood house. built in 1935. Lisa Klein, 39, was pronounced dead at the scene. Jeff Klein was treated for burns at Royal Oak's Beaumont Hospital. According to Commerce Fire Chief Joe Schornack, it was not immediately determined if Lisa died from asphyxi- ation or from burns; the cause of the fire is still under investigation. Schornack pointed out there were fireworks in the house, which Klein said "we were going to shoot off July 4 on Lower Straits Lake." Fire offi- cials said the fireworks weren't the cause of the blaze, although they "hampered the fire-fighting effort," Klein said. He said they didn't start pop- ping until much later. Klein said he feels that the firefighters "did everything they could to rescue Lisa." Klein, a graduate of West Bloomfield High School, met Lisa 10 years ago when he moved to North Miami Beach, Fla. Lisa, a New York native, was a waitress at a restaurant where he was a pizza delivery man. "We got married, and I brought her to Michigan," he said. "She was my whole life — there's no way I can replace her. She always made everyone happy; there was no one else like her." Klein is staying temporarily with Cheri and Robert Green of White Lake Township. Lisa was a medical assistant for Drs. Peggyann Nowak, Melissa McBrien and Homaira Danish in the Beaumont Office Building in West Bloomfield. Many employees in the building attended the June 27 funeral. In his eulogy, Rabbi Joshua Bennett of Temple Israel described how Lisa always had an "open door policy — everyone was welcome at their home; she was a very warm and loving person." He added: "After you engaged in a conversation with Lisa, you became her lifelong friend." Lisa Klein is survived by her husband, Jeff; par- ents, Carl and Merle Seeman of Orlando, Fla.; sis- ter and brother-in-law, Jerri and Jim Santangelo of Plantation, Fla.; brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Steven and Amy Klein of West Bloomfield, and nieces and nephews, James and Dana Santangelo and Joshua Klein. Lisa Klein and her husband, Jeff Interment was at Clover Hill Park Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Trustees of Columbia Memo, Elliott Hyman Research Fund, c/o Dr. Robert L. Fine, 650 W. 168th St., BB 20- 05, New York, N.Y. 10032, or a charity of one's choice. Arrangements by Hebrew Memorial Chapel. ❑ Composer And Poet LEONARD POGER Copy Editor A lexander David Frank loved celebrating the Jewish holidays with his family. He also loved writing poetry and composing music. Active in the Detroit music scene, he enjoyed working with and supporting new bands. "He was a rock-and-roll guy," said his father, Alan Frank of Franklin. Sadly, the young man's life and career were cut short Friday. Mr. Frank, 29, died June 24, 2005, in his Franklin home of pancreatic cancer. He was diag- nosed with the disease last August. His father, a former general manager at WDIV- TV and now president of Post-Newsweek Stations, said Alex was very "outgoing, opinionated and had a flashy style. He was an iconoclastic person with friends all over — Chicago and New York." 6/30 2005 84 Alexander Frank "He was a writer and lived the life of a writer," said his father. Alex celebrated his bar mitzvah at the former Temple Beth Jacob in Pontiac. The family are now members of Temple Kol Ami, West Bloomfield. Alex was a good cook and helped prepare family meals at holiday time. But his favorite meal was his mother's potato kugel, his father said. He was a graduate of Roeper School in Bloomfield Hills and attended Landmark College in Vermont. Alex is survived by his parents, Alan and Ann Frank of Franklin; brothers and sister-in-law, Jordan and Denise Frank of Chicago; Benjamin of Miami; grandparents, Patricia and Ian Hodson of Canada, Jean Hodson of Canada, Alice Frank of Pittsburgh. Alex was the beloved grandson of the late Saul Frank. Interment was in Franklin Cemetery. Contribu- tions may be made to the Alex Frank Scholarship Fund at Berklee College of Music, 1140 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215, Attention: Marjorie O'Malley. Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel. E1 .